Here’s a little info for the ones of you who would love to know a little more about the front figures when it comes to wine making – the wine producers? Of course. But many of those with a little more money in the pocket buy consultancy services from various enologists based on what kind of wine they wish to end up with in the end.
According to legendary Brunello Wine Producer Mrs. Donatella Cinelli Colombini the 10 enologists that have changed the world -I’ve chosen to call them the Worlds Top 10 most influential Enologist- are as follows
#10: Sam Harrop (samharropwine.com), especially known for his engagement with Loire wines and New Zealand syrah and chardonnays
#9: Demei Li, China’s most influential wine maker. Known in the world for his training at Chateau Palmer followed up by his position as Chief Winemaker and technique director of the French-Chinese governmental joint venture; Sino-French Demonstration Vineyards and Winery (a winery and research center situated on the verges of the Great Wall, north of Beijing)
#8: Kym Milne, Australian wine maker, most known for his “Flying Winemaker” activities (an expression coined by winemaker and retailer Tony Laithwate). The expression covers for a winemaker crossing continents in his work as wine consultant / winemaker.
#7: The Laithwaites; Tony & Barbara Laithwaite and sons
#6: Denis Dubourdieu, professor at the University of Bordeaux. Specially known for his quality adding to whites
#5: Alberto Antonini (finally an Italian, however located in Chile). Amongst others winemaker for E & J Gallo and previous senior winemaker for Antinori and Frescobaldi
#4: Self-made Stephane Derenoncourt, world known winemaker working with numerous estates in Bordeaux
#3: Paul Hobbs, the Opus One Guy (paulhobbswinery.com) He has had great succes with malbec and rumour want’s that he is now up to something in India. A few years ago Forbes named him “The Steve Jobs of Wine”.
#2: Michel Rolland might be the most famous & successful of this list with around 150 clients in the world. He’s quoted to have said that he refuses to keep a certain line. However critics want that a such statement can seem peculiar since he keeps making wines very pleasable to the taste buds of Robert Parker
#1: The absolute two most influential enologists remain from the French Boissenot family. Father and son, Jacques and Eric Boissenot, are keeping a very low profile but it is widely known in the wine business that they are behind some of the World’s most prestigious wines such as Latour, Lafite, Margaux, Rothschild, Rauzan Ségla, Signals Rabaud and more.